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Revealing Regional Deforestation Dynamics in North-Eastern Madagascar—Insights from Multi-Temporal Land Cover Change Analysis

Author

Listed:
  • Julie G. Zaehringer

    (Centre for Development and Environment, University of Bern, Hallerstrasse 10, CH-3012 Bern, Switzerland)

  • Sandra Eckert

    (Centre for Development and Environment, University of Bern, Hallerstrasse 10, CH-3012 Bern, Switzerland)

  • Peter Messerli

    (Centre for Development and Environment, University of Bern, Hallerstrasse 10, CH-3012 Bern, Switzerland)

Abstract

The north-eastern escarpment of Madagascar harbours the island’s last remaining large-scale humid forest massifs surrounded by a small-scale agricultural mosaic. There is high deforestation, commonly thought to be caused by shifting cultivation practiced by local land users to produce upland rice. However, little is known about the dynamics between forest and shifting cultivation systems at a regional level. Our study presents a first attempt to quantify changes in the extent of forest and different agricultural land cover classes, and to identify the main dynamics of land cover change for two intervals, 1995–2005 and 2005–2011. Over the 16-year study period, the speed of forest loss increased, the total area of upland rice production remained almost stable, and the area of irrigated rice fields slightly increased. While our findings seem to confirm a general trend of land use intensification, deforestation through shifting cultivation is still on the rise. Deforestation mostly affects the small forest fragments interspersed in the agricultural mosaic and is slowly leading to a homogenization of the landscape. These findings have important implications for future interventions to slow forest loss in the region, as the processes of agricultural expansion through shifting cultivation versus intensified land use cannot per se be considered mutually exclusive.

Suggested Citation

  • Julie G. Zaehringer & Sandra Eckert & Peter Messerli, 2015. "Revealing Regional Deforestation Dynamics in North-Eastern Madagascar—Insights from Multi-Temporal Land Cover Change Analysis," Land, MDPI, vol. 4(2), pages 1-21, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jlands:v:4:y:2015:i:2:p:454-474:d:50404
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Jessica Noromalala Andriamparany & Hendrik Hänke & Eva Schlecht, 2021. "Food security and food quality among vanilla farmers in Madagascar: the role of contract farming and livestock keeping," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 13(4), pages 981-1012, August.
    2. Zaehringer, J.G. & Schwilch, G. & Andriamihaja, O.R. & Ramamonjisoa, B. & Messerli, P., 2017. "Remote sensing combined with social-ecological data: The importance of diverse land uses for ecosystem service provision in north-eastern Madagascar," Ecosystem Services, Elsevier, vol. 25(C), pages 140-152.
    3. Evelyn Asante-Yeboah & George Ashiagbor & Kwabena Asubonteng & Stefan Sieber & Justice C. Mensah & Christine Fürst, 2022. "Analyzing Variations in Size and Intensities in Land Use Dynamics for Sustainable Land Use Management: A Case of the Coastal Landscapes of South-Western Ghana," Land, MDPI, vol. 11(6), pages 1-28, May.
    4. Annemarie Wurz & Teja Tscharntke & Dominic Andreas Martin & Kristina Osen & Anjaharinony A. N. A. Rakotomalala & Estelle Raveloaritiana & Fanilo Andrianisaina & Saskia Dröge & Thio Rosin Fulgence & Ma, 2022. "Win-win opportunities combining high yields with high multi-taxa biodiversity in tropical agroforestry," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 13(1), pages 1-13, December.
    5. O. Ravaka Andriamihaja & Florence Metz & Julie G. Zaehringer & Manuel Fischer & Peter Messerli, 2019. "Land Competition under Telecoupling: Distant Actors’ Environmental versus Economic Claims on Land in North-Eastern Madagascar," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(3), pages 1-23, February.
    6. Jahanifar, Komeil & Amirnejad, Hamid & Mojaverian, Seyed Mojtaba & Azadi, Hossein, 2020. "Land use change drivers in the Hyrcanian Vegetation Area: Dynamic simultaneous equations system with panel data approach," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 99(C).
    7. Ali Kourosh Niya & Jinliang Huang & Hazhir Karimi & Hamidreza Keshtkar & Babak Naimi, 2019. "Use of Intensity Analysis to Characterize Land Use/Cover Change in the Biggest Island of Persian Gulf, Qeshm Island, Iran," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(16), pages 1-16, August.
    8. Llopis, Jorge C. & Chastonay, Jonas F. & Birrer, Franziska C. & Bär, Roger & Andriatsitohaina, R. Ntsiva N. & Messerli, Peter & Heinimann, Andreas & Zaehringer, Julie G., 2021. "Year-to-year ecosystem services supply in conservation contexts in north-eastern Madagascar: Trade-offs between global demands and local needs," Ecosystem Services, Elsevier, vol. 48(C).
    9. Jean-François Mas & Rodrigo Nogueira de Vasconcelos & Washington Franca-Rocha, 2019. "Analysis of High Temporal Resolution Land Use/Land Cover Trajectories," Land, MDPI, vol. 8(2), pages 1-19, February.

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